Photograph of a waiting-to-vote line outside P.S. 87 in NYC by swruler0284 on Flickr Gothamist greeted Election Day with excitement--and some really, really long lines. Even Tim Robbins had a meltdown at his polling site!Bostonist discovered that it's hard out there for a singer when we met The Opera Guy, a classically trained busker, and Jess Tardy, an independent singer-songwriter whose work has appeared on television.Seattlest thought that this video of Capitol Hill hipsters......

Gothamist was mesmerized by the trailer for Empire, a movie about biking in NYC with a flagrant disregard for traffic laws, safety and basic common sense.Phillyist couldn't really talk about anything but their World Series-winning Phillies. The curse has been reversed!LAist got annoyed at the Sarah Palin effigy in West Hollywood. It was eventually taken down, but then a Barack Obama one was put up in Redondo Beach.Chicagoist spent the week preparing for Barack......

Photo by 3dollarbilly. SFist asked readers (who weren't busy battling it out over the election) to take a moment to decide what should be done with the city's mammoth Mervyns space after the retail semi-giant decided to call it quits this week. Bostonist couldn't get enough of hometown icon (and living embodiment of PC computers) John Hodgman.Shanghaiist wonders if any of the 3,000 single men and women who attended this mass matchmaking session hooked......

Retro futurism found at fabiofeminofantascience.org SFist looked into the future of San Francisco by worrying about the taco intake of its youth; hailing its first-ever bicycle traffic light, installed at an infamously dangerous intersection; and questioning Mayor Newsom's plan to turn the Civic Center, a notably violent neighborhood, into the "Sustainable Resource District" of tomorrow.Gothamist was horrified to watch a video of the police using a Taser on an emotional disturbed man, who fell......

Photograph by labatata on Flickr Gothamist went on the Wall Street roller coaster during a crazy week for financial institutions (bankruptcy, sale, bailout) and the county.Phillyist analyzed the problem of hecklers at live performances.Londonist eagerly anticipated the annual Open House Weekend, where for one weekend only, the public get to poke around some of the capital's more interesting buildings.LAist headed to the LA County Fair to earn a heart attack by checking out all......

Image courtesy of zig. Torontoist took issue with an ad campaign treating homeless people like billboards, especially after the ad agency's creative director proved he maybe didn't know what "exploitive" means.LAist found it to be a sad and grim week with a major train collision leaving over 20 dead (photos), a serial killer on the loose and a deeper look into Skid Row.DCist snapped some shots of the Pentagon Memorial opening.Phillyist was all about......

Photo credit: art218.com Shanghaiist can't wait to meet the tattooed Louis Vuitton pigs that are coming to town.Phillyist commenters spent the early part of the week debating whether Barack Obama is an asshole. Phillyist concluded that the political assholes were, however, the St. Paul police for their treatment of a local photographer covering the RNC.Bostonist mapped out the city for newcomers.Torontoist reintroduced their series of interactive Flash panoramas with a look at the city's......

Image courtesy of the British Library. Londonist explored the hidden basement levels of the British Library.Phillyist wondered whether AT&T was treating them just like everyone else.Bostonist got all worked up about grammar. A local man, member of the Typo Eradication Advancement League and apparent troublemaker, was busted (or is it got busted?) fixing/besmirching an historic sign at the Grand Canyon.Seattlest talked with icanhascheeseburger.com head honcho Ben Huh about the existence of dirty LOLcats and......

Photo by wvallen/Flickr Chicagoist snapped up some stunning images and a severe summer storm.LAist is still on the health beat. After following the regional city ban on new fast food restaurants, the county is proposing calorie counts on fast food menus.DCist caught an awkward but funny typo in the Associated Press story about conservative columnist Robert Novak's retirement after having been diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor.Phillyist was the first online news outlet to......

Photo by Tom Andrews/LAist LAist walked Hollywood Boulevard to find the true style and fashion of the real, raw, non-celebrity Hollywood.Bostonist debated the claim that Boston is America's most racist city.Shanghaiist was taken aback by the video of an unknown Islamic terror group purporting to be responsible for recent bombings in China and warning of future attacks during the Olympics.Torontoist spent the week taking a detailed look at homicide statistics for their city, including......

Photo of Charlton Athletic FC and the Thames Barrier by Dean Nicholas. Londonist was treated to some fantastic views of the city, courtesy of the 'Star Over London' airship.Bostonist spent the week celebrating New England's quintessential summer meal, the lobster roll.Torontoist explored the dangerous lives of stickmen.Seattlest wondered if a suicide prevention net was really the best idea for stopping people from jumping off the Aurora bridge.Gothamist was grossed out when hearing a man......

Photo by squeakyrat from the Torontoist Flickr Pool. Torontoist discovered a warning label affixed to some of the newspaper boxes of one of its daily papers.DCist was saddened by the tragic death of 22-year-old bicyclist Alice Swanson, who was killed when a garbage truck ran her over in a busy intersection. A "ghost bike" was erected in her honor just north of Dupont Circle.Shanghaiist was caught up all week with the gruesome murder of......

Photo of Cody by Dan Bergeron Torontoist took a look at Regent Park, a low-income neighborhood whose soon-to-be-demolished buildings are being graced with huge wheatpastes of the area's displaced residents. (On that note, they also tried to find a legal middle ground for street art.)Phillyist curated their first art exhibition, and posted pictures from its opening.Gothamist was shocked when surveillance footage was released of a Brooklyn hospital's staffers repeatedly ignoring a patient--who had waited......

Photograph of one of the man-made waterfalls under the Brooklyn Bridge by Jake Dobkin Gothamist enjoyed watching New York City's latest big public art project--four multi-story man-made waterfalls--rise up in East River and the debate about whether it's art or folly (but they sure look pretty at night).Londonist handed out advice on how to queue for Wimbledon tickets, then embarked on a gruelling fact-finding tour of drinking-holes at the capital's main terminus rail stations.Seattlest......

Photo by AP Photo/Hector Mata LAist celebrated the first days of gay marriage by showing up to the first celebrations in Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, and Los Angeles. And yes, Star Trek's George Takei was there. Bostonist covered the Celtics' NBA championship in many ways, writing about the game, the win, the post-victory peeing, the internet buzz, and the victory parade. Chicagoist helped try to stop the Kool-Aid Man's path of destruction. While same-sex......

Photo by TObike from the Torontoist Flickr Pool. Torontoist featured the astonishing story (and equally astonishing photos) of more than 200 cyclists spontaneously taking over the westbound lanes of the city's downtown expressway for 7 kilometers late on a Friday afternoon.Phillyist got to chat with singer/songwriter and internet phenomenon Eric Hutchinson as his major-label debut hit stores.Shanghaiist was annoyed by Sharon Stone's suggestion that the Sichuan earthquake was China's karma for its treatment of......

Photo credit: Mat Honan Shanghaiist covered anti-China Olympic torch relay protests in London, Paris and San Francisco.Gothamist marveled as the NY State Assembly killed NYC's controversial congestion pricing plan without even holding a vote.SFist reported live on the only U.S. leg of the Olympic torch relay, which was a disaster for Mayor Gavin Newsom. DCist was tickled to see that Heroes star Hayden Panettiere filmed a short PSA to support voting rights and statehood......

Image credit: Presidentialmemorial.org SFist broke news about the Presidential Memorial Commission of San Francisco's plan to rename the city's wastewater treatment facility to the George W. Bush Sewage Plant.After the previous week's chaos and confusion at Heathrow, Londonist was soothed somewhat by news of a novel way to ease congestion on the runway. The piggyback flights are apparently April fuel efficient.Gothamist was impressed the NY City Council approved congestion pricing, the controversial plan to......

Photo credit: sushiesque/Flickr Bostonist attended the Anime Boston convention and took some glorious pictures of anime fans showing off their costumes at the mall, much to the delight of civilians.Seattlest took a trip on Virgin America Airlines and lived to tell the tale of its awesomeness.Londonist experienced a total lack of surprise at the chaos, crisis, and near-collapse of famous English reserve at the opening of the hotly opposed new airport terminal T5 at......

Photo: SkyscraperSunset.com Phillyist was one of the first outlets in Philadelphia to report on the proposed American Commerce Building, a skyscraper that would tower 525 feet over their current tallest and could join the ranks of the world's tallest skyscrapers. The plans would include publicly-accessible gardens, a 26-story hotel, and several floors of retail space—Including, we hope, metaphysical coffee.SFist watched one of its contributors interviewed on the local news about his LiveJournal site's notorious......

Photograph of investigation at Times Square recruiting center by kerfuffle & zeitgeist on Flickr Gothamist found that an explosive set off outside the Times Square army recruiting center may be similar to five past bombings in New York City.Seattlest worried when severed right feet and bottles of rat poison started washing up on local beaches.Shanghaiist was surprised by Bjork's rooting for Tibetan independence at her concert (see video), and the political fallout has only......

Photo by Andy Sternberg/LAist A posthumous tribute wall dedicated to singer/songwriter Elliot Smith sat defaced by graffiti for months on end -- LAist said enough, so did the fans and city council.SFist was surprised to learn that chronic presidential candidate Ralph Nader picked former San Francisco Supervisor Matt Gonzalez as his running mate.Phillyist explored the possibilities of green cleaning.In the latest edition of Reel Toronto, a bi-weekly feature looking at films shot in Toronto......

Photo credit: sniderscion Torontoist spent its week uncovering who was behind mysterious ads for a drug called "Obay" that popped up across the country (Scientology? Frank Shepard Fairey?), first tracing them to an advocacy group called Colleges Ontario and then confirming their suspicions a few days later.Phillyist learned how to put on a puppet show – it's not as easy as you might think!Shanghaiist discovers that the average starting monthly pay for fresh graduates......

Photo by Phillyist's Matt Johnson, SkyscraperSunset.com, December 19, 2007. Phillyist explored an impending implosion and lived to tell the tale.Gothamist marveled at the city's new NYC-branded condom campaign - especially the use of a Toronto landmark in the advertising. (Also, fun fact: Gothamist turned five years old yesterday.)Tired of the worldwide Scientology protests? Torontoist totally isn't: they covered the big downtown protest the day it happened, and followed up with an examination of all......

Photograph of Michael Strahan, coach Tom Coughin (holding the Vince Lombardi trophy) and quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning by Tien Mao Gothamist was amazed after the Giants won the Super Bowl, the city went wild, and it witnessed a ticker-tape parade.Barack Obama drew 20,000+ ahead of Seattle’s Saturday caucus.Londonist had Super Tuesday too.Elusive guerrilla street artist Banksy revisits Los Angeles.After the Patriots lost the Super Bowl and came this close to making......

SFist worried over drugstore chain Walgreens celebration of Black History Month.Gothamist was surprised that apparently New York City is the fourth most miserable city in the country, after Detroit, Stockton, CA, and Flint, MI.Shanghaiist finds out what the Chinese think of Hilary and Obama.It was with a healthy amount of schadenfreude that Phillyist reported that former Eagle, and now Cowboy (ew), Terrell Owens owes the Eagles a significant wad of cash.Torontoist is two weeks......

Photograph of memorial outside Heath Ledger's NYC apartment Gothamist learned that actor Heath Ledger was found dead in his SoHo apartment, cause of death unknown so far (but apparently the masseuse who found him called Mary-Kate Olsen before 911).Bostonist considered sending a link about the Super Bowl, but damn! The New Kids are reuniting!Although Sylvester Stallone is a native of New York City, his Rocky character lets many Philadelphians consider him a native son......

Photograph of the Trump Soho by Riccardo Sinti Gothamist went to the scene of the Trump Soho construction collapse, which left one construction worker dead and others injured (an indirect culprit - Manhattan's hot real estate market, causing rushed construction jobs).Shanghaiist is confused by media reports as to whether Playboy will be available in China during the year of the Olympics.LAist got fugged in an interview with the Go Fug Yourself girls.Torontoist set hearts......

• Londonist pondered who might be the next sponsors of the London Eye and whether or not readers would be willing to donate £1,000 each for a Londonist Eye.
• Shanghaiist was shocked to find a cameltoe in the city's only English-language paper.
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Continue Reading "Week Around the -Ists"

LAist listed a top ten list of sorts: things they hope not to see in Los Angeles in 2008. (one example, pictured above). Shanghaiist was surprised to learn that "godless," "atheist," and "commie" China is soon going to be the world's largest supplier of Bibles! Torontoist picked some of their favorite photos of 2007. Londonist was relieved to hear the fire at the Royal Marsden hospital didn't harm any of the patients even though......